a. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to methods for teaching music and, more particularly, to a method for teaching musical notation that establishes an association between rhythm and physical objects or visual indicia and may also be used in conjunction with algebraic equations and other mathematical instruction.
b. Related Art
The importance and beneficial effects of developing musical skills is well recognized by those who study childhood development. For example, it is believed that what is generally referred to as human intelligence is actually made up of a plurality of distinct but interrelated “intelligences,” each of which appears to be somewhat localized in separate regions of the brain; some specialists have theorized that there are at least seven identifiable “intelligences” namely (1) use of the body to solve problems or to make things, (2) an understanding of other individuals, (3) an understanding of ourselves, (4) language, (5) logical-mathematical analysis, (6) special representation, and (7) musical thinking (e.g., see Frames of Mind, The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, Howard Gardner, Basic Books, Inc. (1983)).
Of all the identifiable “intelligences,” musical thinking is believed to be one of the first to become enabled during a child's development. As a result, to the extent that this particular intelligence is successfully developed as early as possible, the symbolization and other skills which the child thus acquires enable the other intelligences to be developed at an accelerated rate. In a broader context, musical intelligence is one of the intelligences or abilities which is considered to make up what is commonly referred to as “right brain” thought; it has become increasingly recognized that development of both “right brain” and “left brain” skills is critical if individuals are to fully achieve their potential.
Despite recognition of its importance, conventional academic environments place relatively little emphasis on musical thinking, with the result that this particular intelligence (together with much or most “right brain” thinking) tends to be widely undeveloped in modern Western society. Not only have most academic programs traditionally stressed “left brain” thinking, but this tendency has in some respects become even more pronounced in recent years. The reasons for this are manifold, but central to the problem appears to be a combination of increasingly demanding academic requirements and the assumption that musical instruction comes at the expense of instruction in areas of “left brain” skills, to which higher priority is given. In other words, musical instruction, despite its acknowledged benefits, is considered a relative luxury and therefore loses out to other areas of instruction in an increasingly demanding academic schedule. Although on the surface this appears to be merely a matter of priorities, the de-emphasis of musical instruction in fact leads to stymied development overall, including impaired development of those “left brain” intelligences on which the instruction focused.
A contributing factor in this situation is the nature of traditional methods used to teach music. Although employed for many generations, traditional techniques incorporate several inherent flaws that impair their effective utilization in the context of both childhood development and contemporary academic settings. To begin with, most techniques use a conventional musical score as a starting point, which presupposes—rather than develops—a level of abstract thinking on the part of the pupil; as a result, conventional musical instruction does not commence until the child is older than optimal and has reached a higher academic level, so that much of the potential developmental benefit of musical instruction is lost. Moreover, conventional methods and curriculum for teaching music do not allow the instruction to integrate with other curricula, so that musical instruction is viewed as a “stand alone” program which absorbs resources at the expense of other areas of instruction.
Accordingly, there exists a need for a method and system for teaching music that can be implemented at earlier stages of childhood development than present methods, so as to take full advantage of the developmental benefits of musical training, but which is not limited to use with young children and can be used with older pupils as well. Furthermore, there exists a need for such a method and system that can be integrated with other curricula so as to allow musical instruction to be implemented in an academic environment with minimal expense to the resources committed to other areas of instruction. Still further, there exists a need for such a method and system that is enjoyable to the pupils and that can be implemented in a classroom or other academic environment utilizing inexpensive and readily available materials.